Baba Ghanoush is a Middle Eastern dip made from roasted eggplant, tahini, lemon juice, and garlic. Lately, I have been trending towards vegetables and dips versus the classic cheese platter. My garden just kept producing so much eggplant I was inspired to make this dish as well as preserve caponata (a traditional Sicilian dish), which I will post the recipe soon. I used the Japanese eggplant for the caponata and the gorgeous globe eggplant for the baba ghanoush. There are various ways to prepare the eggplant….1. Over a hot grill, 2. On top of a gas stove, 3. Broil in the oven. To get the smokiest flavor I love doing it on the grill. I like to also char a few peppers at the same time.

Yield: about 2 cups
2 lbs. eggplant
2 medium peppers (I like yellow or red for this)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup sesame tahini
2 garlic cloves – roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra-virgin olive oil
Za’atar ( my go to favorite spice for so many dishes)

Grilling the eggplant and peppers:
Prepare a hot gas grill at around 350. Pierce the eggplants in several places with a fork and place over the hot grill with the peppers.
Grill, turning regularly until soft and charred all over. If you are using your gas oven, turn on high broil and place eggplant on a foil lined baking sheet.
Broil until all sides are charred. Larger eggplants will need to be wrapped at this point in foil and placed in oven @ 350 for 20 minutes. Once peppers are blackened all over, wrap in foil or paper and let cool on the counter.
Place the eggplant in a colander in the sink and allow to cool and drain.
Peel and discard black skins, cut off the stems and let the eggplant sit in the colander to drain for another 15-20 minutes.
Unwrap peppers, peel and remove seeds and core.
In a food processor purée the eggplant, peppers, garlic, lemon juice and tahini…add salt and pepper to taste.

To serve: place the purée in a serving bowl and sprinkle a little za’atar on top.

This dish is truly the best the day it is made however, I have loved it as leftovers for days after. It is delicious in a veggie wrap!

Bon Appétit